Chief Nursing Officer for Scotland

Overview:

This is a Director (SCS 2) level role based in Edinburgh with some travel required.

They will provide leadership of the Nursing & Midwifery professions across the Health and Social Care System in Scotland, and within Scottish Government.

As a member of the Health and Social Care Management Board, the CNO will participate fully in the corporate management of the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates (DGH&SC), working with colleagues to provide advice to Ministers and to support the implementation of Ministerial policy.

The postholder will be highly visible at a senior level within Scottish Government, and externally working with leaders across NHS Boards, The National Care Service, Scottish Universities and Colleges, the Council of Deans, Trade Unions, Professional Organisations, Integrated Joint Boards, care providers, UK government directorates, UK wide professional organisations, the Nursing Midwifery Council and other UK wide regulators, as well as other partners to support the achievement of Scottish Government priorities, and the best health and care outcomes for people.

The CNO will work with the Chief Medical Officer and other clinical advisors to provide cohesive clinical advice to support officials and Ministers. The CNO will also provide support to a range of Chief Professional Officers including the Chief Allied Health Professions Officer (CAHPO), Chief Midwifery Officer (CMidO) and Chief Healthcare Science Officer (CHCSO).

Responsibilities:

• Provide high profile and visible leadership of the professions across Scotland, focussing on our recovery and reform agenda for health and care services, and contributing to wider Scottish Government objectives in relation to child poverty, the economy and climate change, and public services.
• Work in partnership with other Chief Professional Officers, and other Health and Social Care Directors to ensure the safe delivery of services and the reduction of health inequalities.
• Engage with and be influential on solutions to safe, sustainable, staffing; key workforce policies; delayed discharges; community packages of care; and overall service pressures. Bringing creative and workable solutions to protect services in social, community and acute care and the wellbeing of the workforce.
• Work closely with the Director of Workforce to identify synergies and improved ways of working across the teams.

Please see the Candidate Pack Candidate Pack for further details on the role and person specification. The terms and conditions of appointment are explained in the separate Candidate Further Information. For any questions on the role please contact Caroline Lamb, Director General, Health & Social Care and Chief Executive of NHS Scotland at DG Health & Social Care dghsc@gov.scot.

Qualifications:

• You must be a nurse or midwife, fully registered in the UK with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
• Professional experience of leading and developing a Nursing and Midwifery professional workforce, in particular to find creative and imaginative ways to develop sustainable services.

• Taking an effective whole system approach to complex, dynamic issues; actively developing wide networks, breaking down and collaborating across barriers to deliver outcomes, with a demonstrable ability to win and maintain the confidence of senior internal and external stakeholders or Ministers with your leadership, judgement and commitment to delivery.
• Being a visible corporate leader, influencing and supporting corporate activities and goals as a member of a senior team, representing your organisation with credibility and operating with sensitivity and political astuteness.

• Embedding an inclusive, learning culture in your teams, where change is seen as an opportunity, trusting and empowering others and enabling high performance and innovation.
• Ability to actively manage wellbeing and create an environment where diversity of thinking and perspective is both valued and nurtured and ability to lead, motivate and inspire staff and a wide range of partners and stakeholders at a time of change and challenge.

• Setting clear strategic direction and making high quality decisions which balance risk and stakeholder interests to deliver outcomes.
• Strong communication skills and the ability to build visibility and awareness with partners and stakeholders.

• You will demonstrate a strong understanding of yourself as a leader as well as a passion for your work and your own continuous personal development. This includes acting as a role model for inclusive leadership by clearly articulating, with courage and humility, how your personal life experiences and background impact on your thinking and behaviour.

How to Apply

Applications should be submitted by no later than Friday 4th October 2024 at 23:55.

To apply for this post, you will need to provide the information requested below via the online application system. You may wish to consult the Further Information Pack when preparing your application.

Application System

You must have an account on our Applicant Tracking System (ATS). Click ‘apply for this job online’ – if you have an account already, enter your log in details. If you don’t have an account, enter your email and you will then be asked to add profile details including a CV.

Your CV should include:

• Contact details
• Relevant & Recent Employment history
• Qualifications that are relevant to your application
• Skills and interests - can be used to describe any additional training or abilities relevant to your application. For example, if you do voluntary work that relates to the role or have additional IT skills.

• A CV (please see above)
• A Supporting Statement (no longer than 1500 words) explaining why you consider your personal skills, qualities and experience suitable for this role, with particular reference to the essential criteria.

If there are any technical issues please contact SCSResourcing@gov.scot

The system will acknowledge your application.